I'm Ricky Qi, a filmmaker, photographer, and National Geographic Explorer.

I was born in Kunming, China and raised in America. Growing up between these two very different worlds has encouraged me to look past dividing lines to find what connects us, and to learn what ancient cultures still have to teach us about being human.

Everything I have done is shaped by this north star. As a writer and director, I made Year of the Rat (Premiere, Hawaii International Film Festival, Golden Angel Award, Chinese American Film Festival, 650,000 views) which explores a Chinese immigrant mother reaching across cultural, generational, and technological divides to connect to her American daughter. Three Bows similarly follows a young culturally disconnected Chinese American man attempting to honor his late grandfather through a ritual he doesn’t quite understand.

My documentary work has taken me to all 7 continents, and explores similar themes. Under One Roof, a feature documentary supported by my National Geographic Explorer's Grant, follows China's last matriarchal tribe facing an impossible choice between isolation and modernity.

My photographs — from retracing the famed Tang Dynasty poet Li Bai's footsteps, to documenting artifacts from the long lost Sanxingdui civilization, to journeying along traditional nomadic communities living on the fringes of modern society — are all inspired by those searching for a sense of wholeness in a world full of fractures, and by the belief that the stories we tell will guide us there.

If you're drawn to similar questions, let’s have a conversation.

If you want to learn more about why I do what I do, start here.